{"product_id":"the-story-of-sigiriya-senani-ponnamperuma-9780987345196","title":"The Story of Sigiriya: History of Sigiriya","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe historical facts surrounding the story of Sigiriya and its builder King Kasyapa is a tale of cruelty, intrigue, vision, grandeur, chivalry, betrayal, and abandonment.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the fifth century, Kasyapa acquires his throne by murdering his father, who he has plastered up alive into a wall. Tormented by guilt, he abandons his capital and flees into the inhospitable forests of central Sri Lanka. There, in an area dominated by a massive column of rock 660 feet high, he builds his royal citadel, a terrestrial paradise of gardens, pavilions, and ponds. He transforms the once foreboding column of rock to appear like a huge white cloud. Around its girth, he paints an exquisite tapestry depicting semi-nude celestial nymphs. On an escarpment halfway up this formidable rock, he constructs a gatehouse in the form of a sphinx-like lion giving his lair its name, Sigiriya-Lion Mountain. Atop the rock, he builds himself a sky palace of unparalleled beauty to emulate Alakamanda, the city of the gods. Hidden from view, he lives in splendid isolation tormented by guilt and fear, finally coming to a gruesome end. Then his splendid city disappears and is forgotten until rediscovered thirteen centuries later by an adventurous young British army officer on an elephant hunt.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePart 1\u003c\/strong\u003e details the history of the site and the king who built it. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePart 2\u003c\/strong\u003e contains an extensive Site Guide with vivid and never before seen photographs of the site. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Senani Ponnamperuma\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0987345192\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780987345196\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Nsm Ponnamperuma\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/30\/2017\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 176\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.06lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 10.00h x 8.00w x 0.48d","brand":"Senani Ponnamperuma","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44120542970111,"sku":"9780987345196","price":35.65,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_58a42c85-632f-44fd-a788-69cb26644f65.jpg?v=1687414910","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-story-of-sigiriya-senani-ponnamperuma-9780987345196","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}